Thursday, November 02, 2006
"My name's BOSU!"
Most of the participants in the fitness classes at the gym where I work are women. I teach both aerobic and strength classes, but most men seem to shy away from what I’m guessing they consider to be sissy choreographed workouts.
Take BOSU for instance. We’ve tried to advertise it to appeal to the male mind. Instead of rhythmic dance steps and moves, we talk about sports performance skills, challenging exercises and dynamic drills. We promise higher levels of functional strength and cardio endurance. We tout increased athleticism, balance, and coordination that improve overall sports conditioning, and functionality in “real life” activities. We herald drills that translate into better performance for soccer, football, basketball, and skating.
My husband ridicules me when I practice new dynamic drills (NOT dance moves) on my BOSU at home. He stands off to the side and riles me by singing this little rhyme, “My name’s BOSU! How do you do?! Now you’re gonna die!” to the Johnny Cash tune, “A Boy named Sue”. He steadfastly refuses to even step on the inflated dome, and see its fun and function. Take a look at this video. I’d like to see my husband try some of those sissy moves—especially the one that involves four BOSUs and 90 degree in air turns. I’ve tried it—it’s very difficult.
There have been few men who are secure enough in their masculinity to complete a BOSU workout. Donnie was the only male in the class the first session that BOSU was offered. He came quite consistently, and increasingly improved his balance and coordination. Then he moved and the class had no men in it until Stacey dragged her husband to it. He said he liked it and came three times, and then the session ended. We haven’t seen him since.
I decided that the personal training venue might lend itself to BOSU converts. I convinced Rod and Kris, husband and wife clients of mine, to try it out. Rod grinned and laughed at himself through the whole workout, and then politely pronounced, “Well, it sure does make you sweat a lot.” Exactly the point!
Today in class we initiated another man, Jim, to the exclusive Male Attenders of the BOSU Class club. He is an excellent golfer, but hasn’t worked out much for a few months. I noted at one point during the class that he was just standing still by the side of the BOSU, looking at it as if it were a giant divot. I’m concerned that Jim won’t come back for BOSU class either. But just in case, I’m working on somehow adapting a dynamic drill to improve a golf game.
Take BOSU for instance. We’ve tried to advertise it to appeal to the male mind. Instead of rhythmic dance steps and moves, we talk about sports performance skills, challenging exercises and dynamic drills. We promise higher levels of functional strength and cardio endurance. We tout increased athleticism, balance, and coordination that improve overall sports conditioning, and functionality in “real life” activities. We herald drills that translate into better performance for soccer, football, basketball, and skating.
My husband ridicules me when I practice new dynamic drills (NOT dance moves) on my BOSU at home. He stands off to the side and riles me by singing this little rhyme, “My name’s BOSU! How do you do?! Now you’re gonna die!” to the Johnny Cash tune, “A Boy named Sue”. He steadfastly refuses to even step on the inflated dome, and see its fun and function. Take a look at this video. I’d like to see my husband try some of those sissy moves—especially the one that involves four BOSUs and 90 degree in air turns. I’ve tried it—it’s very difficult.
There have been few men who are secure enough in their masculinity to complete a BOSU workout. Donnie was the only male in the class the first session that BOSU was offered. He came quite consistently, and increasingly improved his balance and coordination. Then he moved and the class had no men in it until Stacey dragged her husband to it. He said he liked it and came three times, and then the session ended. We haven’t seen him since.
I decided that the personal training venue might lend itself to BOSU converts. I convinced Rod and Kris, husband and wife clients of mine, to try it out. Rod grinned and laughed at himself through the whole workout, and then politely pronounced, “Well, it sure does make you sweat a lot.” Exactly the point!
Today in class we initiated another man, Jim, to the exclusive Male Attenders of the BOSU Class club. He is an excellent golfer, but hasn’t worked out much for a few months. I noted at one point during the class that he was just standing still by the side of the BOSU, looking at it as if it were a giant divot. I’m concerned that Jim won’t come back for BOSU class either. But just in case, I’m working on somehow adapting a dynamic drill to improve a golf game.
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Well, I can't promise The Little Princess's first word will be BOSU, but I bet she will engage in some kind of ball sport..!
Where have I been? I had to Google the word BOSU just to figure out the subject of this post. My best guess was that it was a brand name for a yoga style exercise ball. Now that I've seen the pictures and read the description, I feel compelled to try it!
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